A successful Brexit may still happen as the EU says Wallonia hasn't killed the trade deal just yet

Paul Magnette, the leader
of the Wallonia region.Francois
Lenoir/Reuters

A single regional government in Belgium looked like it killed off
all hope that Britain will be able to strike a trade deal with
the European Union after the Brexit is complete.

That's because Wallonia, in Belgium, rejected a the EU-Canada
Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, or CETA, last week
and
then for a second time on Monday. It means the deal, which
has taken 7 years to negotiate, could collapse, as all areas of
Europe must ratify it.

The 7 year's of potentially wasted work highlight just how hard
it will be for Britain to do a deal with the EU after it leaves
the 28-member bloc.

But European Council President Donald Tusk said on Tuesday that
he and the Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, are hoping
that
Wallonia will change its mind on Thursday:

Together with PM @JustinTrudeau, we think Thursday's summit still possible. We encourage all parties to find a solution. There's yet time.

CETA was all but done and just needed to be ratified by all EU
member states before being implemented.

But Wallonia, which is one of Belgium's six legislatures, refused
to support CETA on Friday after having vetoed it earlier in the
week, meaning Belgium's national government cannot approve the
deal. Charles Michel, the Belgian prime minister, confirmed on
Monday afternoon he was not able to sign the agreement.

It's another reminder of how difficult the Brexit negotiations
will be for UK Prime Minister Theresa May's government. Even if
May can get a deal on favourable terms with the EU's negotiating
team, there's no guarantee it will pass.

Belgium, like other EU member states, operates under a federalist
political system. This means that significant powers are granted
to regional governments, allowing them to block legislation at
the national level.